Radiant Violets: NOLA Shifters Series, #4

By Angel Nyx

Casey Owens

After a night of partying, Casey had to grow up fast. At a time when most fifteen year old girls were worrying about what they wanted to wear to the next dance, she was worrying about how she was going to finish school while raising a child. The whispers, the dirty looks, and having to see the boy who raped her every time she went into town, turned her into a recluse. When her old Pack Mate, Lily Quinn, reaches out and offers her a haven in New Orleans, Casey takes it. All she wants to do is raise her son and be happy. She didn't need a man in her life for that, but one look at Nikolai and she started having second thoughts.


Nikolai Romanov

As a Siberian Tiger Shifter unable to return to Russia, where the rest of his species lived, Nikolai had accepted a long time ago that he would never find his mate. While some, like his brother, chose to marry humans, Nikolai chose to remain alone. The moment he catches Casey's scent he is drawn to her. When his eyes lock onto the petite blond, he refuses their bond. She was a wolf; he was a tiger. It wasn't possible. So why, when she leaves New Orleans, does his tiger pine for her as if he'd lost his mate?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Angel Nyx
• Release date: Oct 27, 2018
• ISBN: 9781393607571

Angel Nyx

Angel Nyx is an author of paranormal, contemporary, and historical romances. Her passion for literature was instilled in her at a young age when her mother read her fairy tale stories at bedtime. Her vivid imagination helps her get in tune with her characters to bring them to life for her readers. She is also a mom, a reader, an avid gamer chick, and a non-medical in-home caregiver.  She was once told that her 'OCD is queen' because it allows her to find errors in written word others miss. As a result, she has recently branched out to offer her proofreading services to other Indie authors.  When she's not working, writing, reading, or gaming, she is usually relaxing to music, spending time with family, or finding new authors to fall in love with.  She has a long time love affair with the city of New Orleans, which is why so much of her work is set there, and plans to visit the city as often as possible in the coming years. You can contact Angel via email at [e-mail] and follow her at any of the following links: Facebook Author Fan Page: https://www.facebook.com/AngelNyxBayouQueen/   GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/17122292.Angel_Nyx   Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/authorangelnyx  AllAuthor: https://allauthor.com/profile/authorangelnyx/  BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/angel-nyx Website: https://www.angelnyx.com/

Book preview

Radiant Violets

Book Four of the NOLA Shifter Series

Angel Nyx

Angel Nyx Publishing, LLC

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidences are either products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously.

Copyright 2017 by Angel Nyx. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the express written permission of the publisher.

Published by Angel Nyx Publishing

Cover design by Najla Qamber Designs

Foreword

The NOLA Shifters Series is set in the Louisiana Bayou. Many of the characters you will meet are Cajun. Their speech patterns reflect this. Too often, authors are leery of using a dialect that is specific to an area or to a group of people. I feel it would be an insult to anyone who is Cajun for me to make my characters Cajun while having them speak perfect English. I hope you enjoy this little glimpse into their world!

To all the survivors of sexual assault, you are not alone. I hear you and I believe you.

To all the single mothers out there raising their children alone, stay strong. You’ve got this!

Prologue

Fourteen was an awfully young age for someone to have to take on adult responsibilities. Casey Owens wasn’t given a choice. Her youth was taken from her the night her life irrevocably changed.

She was the quiet girl, the one who didn’t get invited to parties, and she was okay with that. She would rather spend her time taking photos of the woods and fields where she lived than going to parties and getting in trouble. Summer had just started and there was a huge end-of-school bash taking place out of town. She’d had no intention of going to it but one of her friends talked her into getting out of the house for a change. She figured it wouldn’t hurt and maybe she could snap a few discreet photographs for a collage.

I’m sooo glad you decided to come, Casey, Sarah said as she looped arms with her friend. They’d ridden to the lake, where the party was happening, with Sarah’s older brother, Ronnie. He was supposed to keep an eye on them, but Casey had the feeling he’d be abandoning them as soon as he could. He wasn’t going to play babysitter even if his parents expected him to. After all, what kind of trouble could they get into?

I don’t know about this, Sarah, Casey said, biting her lip. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.

Oh, stop. You never get out and do anything, not really. It’s time you had some fun, Sarah replied.

Casey rolled her eyes but let herself be dragged into the crowd. She’d heard all the tales about how you never accepted an already opened drink and never left your drink unattended, so she was sure she’d be fine.

Having fun?

Casey turned at the voice and blinked. Garret Michaels was the son of the town’s mayor. They had money out the wazoo and he always had a girl on his arm. That he was standing here in front of her, alone, was a bit of a shock. That he was talking to her was even more of a shock. Um, I guess, she finally replied.

You guess? You don’t like parties? Is that why I’ve never seen you at any of the others? Garret asked.

Casey blushed a little. I’ve just never really been that interested in them, she admitted. I’m more of a homebody, according to my best friend.

You’ve been missing out, Casey. He smirked when she looked startled at him knowing her name. It’s not that big of a school and I make it a habit of knowing the names of all the hot girls, he told her.

Casey snorted. You must be drunk, or you need glasses, because hot is the one thing I know I’m not.

He slid an arm around her shoulders. I beg to differ.

What Casey didn’t realize at the time was that he slipped something in the drink she was holding when he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She soon felt a bit lightheaded and before she could register what was happening, Garret had led her away from the party. Despite the fact she was a shifter and he was human, she wasn’t strong enough to push him away, not with what he’d slipped her. The drug was so strong, it kept her inner wolf from coming out to protect her. Some time later Sarah found her where he’d left her, with her jeans tangled around her ankles and tears drying on her cheeks.

Casey tried to report the rape, she really did. How did one get justice in a small town when their rapist was the son of the very wealthy mayor? They didn’t. No charges were brought against him and while her life spiraled into one of depression, Garret went about his business like nothing had happened. When she realized she was pregnant, her parents tried to talk her into aborting it. She was too young to care for an infant, they said. She needed to think about her education, her dreams of going to college. Casey looked them both in the eye and, without hesitation, told them no. She would finish school from home, reverting to being homeschooled—really she’d taught herself since both her parents worked, and when her son was born would list the father as ‘Unknown’. If Garret ever wanted anything to do with her son, he would have to admit to what he’d done first, and she knew there was no way in hell he was going to admit to raping her. He’d sworn that he never had sex with her, that she’d hit on him and he’d turned her down.

If it wasn’t for the Pack, Casey knew she wouldn’t have made it through the months after the rape. She found solace in their coming together and she found someone she could really look up to and talk with in her Alpha’s daughter, Lily. Lily was only four years older than her, and when Casey had been at her lowest point, Lily had helped her through it. She had been there when her son, Jacob, came into this world, almost taking her out of it in the process. Lily had given Casey the strength to face the future regardless of how unsettling it was.

Chapter One

Casey

It was late afternoon, the sun was out, and Casey was curled up on her front porch with a cup of mint tea. Her parents had come by earlier, to take Jacob out for ice cream, to treat him for getting such good grades at school, and she was enjoying the moment of quiet. It was funny, if she thought about it, her parents being so proud of him. They’d tried to get her to abort the pregnancy because she was so young, and now they wouldn’t dream of Jacob not being in their lives. Sometimes she wondered if their love for Jacob would be different if he’d taken after his human father instead of after her. When a human and a shifter had children together, it was a 50/50 chance whether or not the child would be able to shift.

As she sat there sipping her tea, her mind kept going back to the conversation she’d had with Lily a few weeks ago. Her friend had hit the nail on the head when she’d said it couldn’t be easy living in the same small town as the man who’d raped her, knowing he’d gotten away with it. Not once had Garret acknowledged Jacob’s existence, even though he had Garret’s brown eyes instead of Casey’s blue ones. Not that Casey was surprised, in the least. Why would he acknowledge his son’s existence when he denied ever touching Casey in the first place?

Her life was there, in Slatefall, but what kind of a life was it? She didn’t go out; she didn’t date. She worked from home, for crying out loud. She worked as a medical transcriptionist; it was a job she could do remotely from anywhere as long as she had WiFi access. It wasn’t her passion, it didn’t make her happy the way her photography once did, but it was a paycheck. The more she thought about the offer Lily made for her and Jacob to move to New Orleans, the more she thought about her future and what she wanted out of life. What was keeping her in Montana? Sure, her parents were there, but was that reason enough for her to pass up the opportunity for something more?

When she heard her parents’ car turn onto the lane, leading to her home, she sighed and finished her cup of tea. She would have to talk with Jacob about the possibility of moving across country. She wasn’t going to just uproot their lives, which could be traumatic for a child, without giving her son the chance to have his say in it, too. Someone looks like he really enjoyed his ice cream, she said once Jacob had joined her on the porch. There was a chocolate stain on the front of his shirt.

Sorry, Mama. He gave her a sad-puppy-dog look.

Casey laughed softly. Go on and change your shirt. I’ll soak it so the chocolate comes out. When he was inside she turned to her parents. Was everything okay?

Of course it was, sweetheart.

Casey arched a brow at her mother. Uh huh. That’s why you look on edge. Come on, Mom, I’m not a child anymore.

Your mother just doesn’t want to upset you. We bumped into Garret at the ice cream shop. I think he’s starting to see the resemblance to him in Jacob.

Casey froze. Did he say something?

He just asked where Jacob got his brown eyes from, her mother hedged.

Dad, tell me what he really said.

He said ‘Brown eyes. Must have gotten them from his dad since his mom’s eyes are blue.’ Then he moved to the counter and put in his order.

Casey suppressed a shiver. No way in hell was she letting Garret anywhere near her son. Thanks for taking him for ice cream. I know he enjoyed himself.

Casey, honey, you don’t have to thank us for doing things with our grandson. We love that little boy.

I know, Mom. Why don’t we get together this weekend for dinner? By then she would have her decision made.

Sure thing, sweetheart. This time I’m cooking. You and Jacob come on out to the house Saturday, whenever you feel like it.

All right, Mom. She gave her parents both a hug and waited until they left to head inside. She found her son stretched out on the floor, drawing. She sat down next to him and looked at what he was drawing. A lion? Why not a wolf?

He shrugged. I wanted to draw something different.

She ruffled his hair a moment. Hey, listen, little guy, I need to talk to you about something.

What’s wrong, Mama? He put his colored pencils down and sat up to look at her.

Casey tugged him onto her lap and cuddled him. Well, here’s the thing, squirt. A very good friend of mine invited us to New Orleans, and I was thinking about maybe moving there. But only if you want to move too. It would mean leaving your friends behind and making all new friends. And leaving Grandma and Grandpa. You’d only get to see them when they visit us or we come here for a visit.

She watched her son chew on his lip as he thought about what she said. If we moved, I could still talk to my friends, right? Like on the phone? And I can talk to Grandma and Grandpa, too?

Of course you could. You could call them every week if you wanted to. Every day, even.

What’s it like in New Orleans?

Well, why don’t you go get my laptop and we can look stuff up together so we can learn more about the city?

Yeah! He hopped up and ran into her bedroom and brought her laptop back to her. They sat there on the floor together, looking at photos of New Orleans, and reading up about the city and the climate. It doesn’t ever snow there. He looked stunned.

It’s way too far south for snow.

He chewed on his lip more. Could I come visit Grandma and Grandpa during Christmas break so I can play in the snow?

Of course, silly. She tickled his side. So, what do you think?

Let’s move! He seemed excited about seeing a new place, one that, by all the photos they’d found, was very colorful.

All right then. We’ll have to let Grandma and Grandpa know when we go to dinner this Saturday. She knew her parents weren’t going to be happy about it, or at least, she didn’t think they would be, but she needed to do this for herself.

Saturday afternoon, Casey loaded her son up in her car and headed over to her parents’ home. The Pack was fairly spread out in their little corner of the world. Sure the area was shared with other Packs, but each territory was fairly large, which allowed Pack members to have some space of their own. She stopped in town at the store, to pick up a bottle of wine for dinner, and was approaching the register with it when a hand reached out and gripped